Man posing as UPS worker robs Skokie man

August 03, 2009

Police in Skokie were looking for two men, including one dressed as a UPS deliveryman, who held a 56-year-old man at knifepoint, tied him up and stole some belongings from his home this morning in the northern suburb, police said tonight.

Between 9:30 a.m. and 9:45 a.m., the suspect posing as a deliveryman knocked on a door of the man's home in the 4200 block of Suffield Court. When the 56-year-old answered the door, the suspect said he had a package for him, told him he needed to sign for it and that his pen ran out of ink.

When the victim turned around to look for another pen, the suspect "entered the house, put a knife to the victim's neck and demanded money," said Skokie Police Cmdr. Michael Ruth.

The other suspect, who was also described as dressed in some sort of uniform, entered the house, took the victim upstairs and tied him up with duct tape, Ruth said. The suspects then ransacked the house, and allegedly took money and jewelry from the home.

The suspect fled the scene in the victim's vehicle. The victim, who Ruth said was "shaken up" but not hurt, eventually managed to break free and flag down a neighbor for help.

The suspect in the UPS uniform is described as a "male with light brown skin" 5 feet 6 to 5 feet 8, 160 pounds, Ruth said, adding that he was also wearing a baseball cap. Ruth said the second suspect is described as a black man, about 40, 5 feet 9, 180 to 200 pounds and was also wearing some sort of uniform.

"There's no trend [of incidents such as these] were aware of [in Skokie]," Ruth said. "It's very unusual."

No one was in custody as of tonight and Ruth could not say why the suspects targeted the man's home.